Snooters and Teeth!

Saturday was a welcomed relief. We have had some incredibly intense winds for the past week or so. The winds had finally begun to lay back towards the end of last week. Roberto Lopez, a local from the SW Kendall area, wanted to treat his son, Roberto Lopez, to a fishing trip for his excellent academic scores. Little Roberto is 14 and a freshman at Coral Reef High School. The weather looked good so we booked the date.

We all met at the dock a little early and the two Roberto’s hung back while Devon and I loaded and prepped the boat. Everything ready, we told the double R’s to come aboard. Devon directed them to the dry storage for their personal bags and the iced cooler for their food and drinks. The Suzuki’s were purring as I guided the big “Cat” out of the slip. I discussed the normal routine and possible expectations for the day as we idled, like a herd of turtles, down the manatee zoned channel.

I throttled up on the 600 ponies and The BEAST let out a growl as we came up on plane. At cruise speed she went back to purring and I pointed her toward one of our favorite Hardtail spots. We stopped there and picked up a dozen or so baits before we headed out for some Ballyhoo. You can never have too much bait and it’s not a bad thing to have different types as well. Once again I ponied up and headed for the ‘hoo patches. Arriving there about 15 minutes later, Devon set out the chum bag and cut some bait. The Bally’s were slow in getting up to the chum but once they crawled into sight they were eager feeders. We caught several dozen on hooks and put them in the other live well. Getting more stupid by the minute, the 10’ Calusa net made short work of a couple dozen worms that had gotten too comfortable while feeding. We quickly dispatched them into the Hardtail well. Off we go into the wild blue yonder!

Arriving on the grounds, after the short run, we found the seas to be about 1-2’ with a residual ground swell of 3’ or so. The skies were blue, the winds were NW at about 10-12 knots, and there was only a trickle of current to the north. Man, what a beautiful day! Devon quickly put out the usual spread of 4 up and 1 down. Little R told us he had never caught a Dolphin and really wanted to catch one. OK. Last trip we had several and this time of year it is not unlikely to encounter them. Well… the morning began painfully slow. Triggerfish (Ocean Tally) were tearing up the baits if I got in too close to the edge, and we had several misses on the down rod. There were 10 -15 boats in the area and the radio was buzzing. Captains were asking each other if it was happening for them. The answers were so very predictable. “Haven’t seen a thing other than Triggers”. Oh Boy, this is just great! As we approached the noon hour we had used up a bunch of baits with only one Trigger on the hook. A few other boats had an occasional Kingfish and there was one boat that had 2 or 3 Dolphin. One or two boats have seen a Sailfish pop up here and there with only a scant couple of these fish being hooked up. Slow! Slow! Slow!

I was beginning to remind myself that we hadn’t had this much trouble catching fish, in a long time. Too long to even remember! Was this going to be the day I paid my dues for all of our past successes? Man, I sure hope not! Devon broke out our lunch and he remarks that eating a sandwich is always a sure fired way to get a hook up. I hope so! We were half way through eating lunch when I made a turn up current and noticed something on the rigger. Crap! It’s another Trigger! Suddenly Devon yells, ”SAILFISH!!! Sailfish on the short flat line!” It’s a small one that is having trouble catching the bait! Devon grabs the rod and free lines the bait back until the fish picks it up. He hands the rod to Little Roberto and tells him to engage and begin reeling until the circle hook finds its mark. Good job! We’re hooked up, Boys! As I reposition the boat, I hear the long rigger pop off then begin free spooling line. Big Roberto! We got another fish going here! Same drill. Engage and reel until the line comes tight. Bada Bing! That’s a DOUBLE!!!!!! The second fish is a good one. Little R has his fish close to the boat and I see that Big R’s fish is screaming line and heading offshore. A minute later and the line is down to less than a third of the spool. I told Devon we had to get after the second fish, NOW! He quickly leaders and unhooks the small 10# Sailfish for Little R on his first ever “Snooter”! I turned the bow towards the other fish and pushed the throttles up a bit to help gain back some of the line. The fish is jumping way out there in front of another boat. Nice fish! After we regained the majority of the line, Big R stayed in control of the fight. This one was an active fish, with many acrobatic moves. Roberto maneuvered the fish boat side and Devon grabbed the leader. That’s a catch, guys! I tried to place a tag but the fish wouldn’t give me a good, clean shot. He made a short strong run pulling the leader out of Devon’s hand, but Big R led him back to the boat. Once again, Devon has the leader and tries to maneuver him for the tag. POP, goes the leader! No tag but definitely a catch. Pretty work, Double R’s!!!

Photobucket

The boat that was offshore of me, hailed us on the squawk box. As it turns out it was a friend of mine, Al Gonzales, who was also hooked up on a fish. He said he was heading in after they boated his fish so we made plans to transfer his bait over to us. The water is still too warm and the worms are soft. They don’t last as good as when the water is chilly. Not to mention that we had spent most of the morning feeding our worms to the Triggerfish. As we waited for Al to get his fish, our down rod goes off. Little R works the rod and Devon puts the steel to a “snake” Kingfish.

Photobucket

Al moves in and passes his bait over to us, then blasts off to go home and watch the football game. Thanks again, Al! The Sailfish bite was smoldering but the Double R’s would rather get Little R a Dolphin catch since that would be another “first” for him. Not a problem… I’ll up the odds and meander out into some deeper water. The down rod pops off and Little R catches an 18-20 pound Barracuda or better known on the BEAST as a Caribbean Spotted Mackerel. Sounds more glamorous, no?

Photobucket

Things slowed for us again as we had worked much farther north. The radio chatter was telling of the Sailfish bite heating up again, down south. We pulled the lines and made a run for it. Setting up and still looking, more for Dolphin than anything else, it never hurts to place yourself in an active area. We continued on searching for our elusive Dorado. As time passes we find ourselves north again. I had another area in mind and as we pulled into the area, the down rod goes crazy. Little R climbs onto the rod and the fish takes him for a ride. Wow! If this is a Kingfish, it’s a nice one! 7-8 minutes later we see color and it is long with a lot of silver flash. It’s one of two could be’s! It could be a King or it could be a Cuda. As Little R gains line and gets it up towards the surface we see the latter is the case. Oh my God! That is a grande’, Dude! Devon hand lifts the fish aboard and if it wasn’t for the teeth and lack of USN markings I would’ve thought he just grabbed a torpedo! Every bit of 40+ pounds of muscle and teeth! Nice job, Little R!

Photobucket

With the departure time upon us, I asked Devon to dump the baits. Let’s see if we can make something happen, a last hoorah, if you will. The down rod goes off again and once again, Little R grabs it. This fish felt stronger than the last so hopefully we have something better this time. Nope! Up comes another Caribbean Spotted Mackerel. Although it seemed tougher than the last one it wasn’t quite as long and about 10 pounds shy in weight too. Oh well… what would you expect a Coral Reef High School student to catch more of? Ironically… Barracudas of course! After all, it is their school mascot!

As I turned the bow of The BEAST toward the barn we see a Sailfish free jumping about 150 feet in front of us. No story here. We dumped all the bait, remember! We cruised in and Big Roberto remarked that we tried our best to get the young one a Dolphin. He said that It just means he’s going to have to keep his grades up so they can come back after one, again!

By the way… The holiday season is fast approaching. Think about it! A fishing charter for that special someone, could be that unforgettable gift you’ve been searching for.

Capt. Jim
The BEAST
305-233-9996
beastcharters@aol.com
www.beastcharters.com

Fronts and Fish

I received a call from one of our customers that fished with us last May. “Gimpy”, Ed Conway, wanted to fish a couple of days with us again. He booked Thursday and Saturday. If you remember back to my report from June 1 of this year, Gimpy was the guy who fished 3 days with a cast on his leg. He was minus the cast but still had a slight tell-tale limp.

Thursday arrived and Gimpy was at the dock at 6:30. He brought along a friend from S. Cal. They were beat up from jet lag and staying up all night drinking. Also with them was my favorite of the old group, “Papi” Julio Sr., the 76 year old Viejo from N. Miami. This was going to be fun if nothing else.

The weather forecast was for a passing cool front with a 50% chance of rain and increasing winds from the NNE. We finished prepping at 7 AM and Devon and I unleashed The BEAST from its lair. We exchanged pleasantries and discussed the past trip of a few months earlier. As we idled out through the channel, we noticed acres of mullet being swept by the tides and wind, across the low spots in the jetty. Devon grabbed the cast net and beat it for the casting deck as I positioned The BEAST for a throw. He loaded the net and made a toss. Holy Mullet, Beast-mate! He hit the Mullet Mother-lode! It took both of us to pull the net aboard. Ed and I quickly grabbed the smaller of the baits and put them in the starboard live well, while Devon grabbed a dip net to scoop the bulk of the larger fish back overboard. Mullet slime everywhere! The next 5 minutes were spent cleaning up the boat deck and ourselves.

Photobucket

We had about 50 nice baits in the well already, so I powered up the horses and headed for one of our Hardtail spots. I figured we would top that well off with a few prime Runner baits. We put about 8 Hardtails in the well with the mullet and, once again, I powered up the 300 Zukes and made our way for our favorite Ballyhoo (worm) patch. Arriving there about 20 minutes later we remarked about how it was actually rougher in the Bay than it was outside. Devon put out the chum and cut some bait as the ’hoo slowly gathered. We quickly put about 2 dozen “hooker” worms into the port live well. The worms kept slithering closer toward the boat and the chum bag, growing less wary as they fed. I wanted to end this last bait gathering process quickly so I grabbed the 10‘ Calusa net and loaded it for a toss. With the cockpit clear, I waited a few minutes until the bally’s gathered tight and then let the net rip. I tossed a pancake that crushed ’em! Devon and I pulled the net aboard and quickly loaded the worms into the well. Let’s get out of here and go fishing, Boys!

Arriving on the edge, Devon quickly set out a 4 top side spread with 1 line down. We had no sooner settled down and remarked about all the Frigates and Terns working the water, when the 2 outrigger lines got smashed. Ed grabbed one rod and Bruce the other. Nice! A bull Dolphin and his cow! The guys played them well and we boated, boxed, and iced them down.

Photobucket

As we set out our next spread, the weather front was approaching us and we were having some light rain and the winds were beginning to get up. We hooked up a couple more chubby Dolphin and boxed them as well. This time of year the fish migrating south from their northern summer waters are fat and sassy. I refer to them as “Carolina Dolphin“. Even the well fed “schoolie” sized fish are keepers, making a good meal rather than a sandwich.

The frontal line crept over us but the rain was light to moderate at best. It only lasted, off and on, for about an hour. The winds, however, were getting stronger and turned out of the NE as the front passed us. The 20 knot winds were building the seas to 5’ and the current was running strong into the wind. I had to keep jogging the boat to the NE to keep the lines tight. Bada Bing! The shortest flat line takes off and we are on a fish. Circling deep, we figured we had a Tuna. Sure enough. As the fish made it’s way to the boat we see we have a decent Skipjack Tuna, which we bled out, and iced down immediately.

The d/rigger produced a couple of Kingfish. They were not very lengthy but they were fat and I do mean fat. A couple more dolphin bites and then the downrigger line starts screaming. Papi was waiting for this one. The fish was a good one as Papi takes a light touch approach. Oops! That didn’t work as shortly into the fight the fish is gone. Get ‘em next time Papi! That didn’t take long as the deep rod once again pops off. As the fish came closer to the boat it looked like a nice Cobia, at first. Nope! When it came close enough to get a good look at it, we realized we had a small Sharpnose Shark on instead. Can’t win them all.

As the afternoon wound down towards evening the winds were getting stronger and the seas were building to 6 and 7 feet. The BEAST was stable and safe, providing a good fishing platform even under these increasingly adverse conditions. Devon worked a speed jig in an area that we know holds Muttons from time to time. I’m marking fish, Devo! Bam! Fish on! Each of the guys managed to bring aboard a Mutton Snapper, only one of which was better than legal. The other 2 fish were borderline so Devon vented them and sent them back home.

We called it a day since the box was heavy with fish for Gimpy’s squad. They were satisfied, darkness would soon be upon us, and Mother Nature was not going to slack off. I turned The BEAST towards home and she dug in her claws, showing her forte’ to everyone aboard. Running rough water!

Photobucket

Gimpy and his group were supposed to fish with us again on Saturday but the winds were relentless. NOAA was calling for 30 knot winds and 8-10’ seas with a small craft advisory in effect. Considering our “safety first” attitude, the only option for Saturday would’ve been to anchor on the lee side of the islands and fish for sharks. Not exactly what we wanted to do so Ed and I mutually decided to cancel the outing. It’s better to fold than play the hand we were dealt!

Capt. Jim
The BEAST
305-233-9996
beastcharters@aol.com
www.beastcharters.com